Research Information System
10th International Congress of the European Union Geriatric Medicine Society, Rotterdam, Netherlands, 17 - 19 September 2014, pp.177, (Summary Text)
Introduction: One of the geriatric problems effecting quality of life is chronic pain in elders. It may cause decreased physical activity, impaired cognition, eating and sleep disorders. It is accepted as a geriatric syndrome. The objective of this study is to investigate the frequency of chronic pain in elders.
Methods: 203 patients older than 75 years of age were included to the study. All subjects were asked if any pain they have had for 3–6 months. Table 1 shows the questions. Visual Analog Scale (VAS) was used to assess the severity of pain.
Results: Females were 136 (67%) and males were 67 (33%) of 203 patients. 96 (47.3%) patients had chronic pain. Mean VAS score of 93 patients was 5.7±1.9 (min. 1, max. 10). There was no significant difference between sex groups. Table 1 shows the frequency and characteristics of chronic pain.
Conclusion: In this study, we observed chronic pain in half of patients. Females had significantly higher pain incidence than males. Chronic pain should be examined and treated in elderly.